Mark Chipman's hockey journey comes full circle with Heritage Classic

Like many Canadian kids, Mark Chipman grew up cheering for the team his Dad cheered for — in his case, the Boston Bruins.

Sitting in the downtown arena he helped develop, watching the team he relocated to Winnipeg take on that same Boston Bruins squad Monday night — in a week where some of the biggest names in hockey are descending on the city for the Heritage Classic this weekend — Chipman said it was a moment for reflection.

"It was sort of full circle for me, as I was sitting there thinking about it and this journey I've been on, which is hard to describe in many ways," he said.

The Winnipeg Jets will take on one of the league's brightest young stars in Connor McDavid and his Edmonton Oilers on Sunday at Investors Group Field, with alumni players like Teemu Selanne, Dale Hawerchuck, Mark Messier and Wayne Gretzky playing in the alumni game Saturday, it's a natural time to look back.

Chipman, the executive chair of the board of True North Sports and Entertainment, and business partner David Thomson led the team that bought and relocated the faltering Atlanta Thrashers to Winnipeg in 2011, a city that had been without NHL hockey since the original Jets franchise moved to Arizona in 1996.

Chipman said it's the city's love of hockey that keeps the organization flying.

"I wish I could put into words the range of emotions you feel about the Jets being back, and the pride that you feel from our fans. I think more than anything, that gives me the greatest sense of accomplishment — just to see how passionate our fans are about our team. It just doesn't seem to waiver," said Chipman.

Chipman said that even in the first five years of the new Jets franchise, he has so many favourite hockey moments, from going into buildings like the United Center and having success against original six teams like the Chicago Blackhawks, to getting to know Jets stars like Teemu Selanne and Dale Hawerchuk and even having conversations with opposing team management — people like Bruins president Cam Neely, a guy Chipman said he revered as a Boston player.

"You get to know these guys, in a business way at meetings, and you find out they're such good people, and I think it's a combination of all those things. It's been really humbling," said Chipman.

Chipman said his love of Winnipeg hockey started in earnest in the early '70s. When Bobby Hull signed with the Jets at Portage and Main, Chipman's dad told him he would now have his own team to cheer for in the NHL.

Picturing hockey in his own hometown was hard to grasp for the then 12-year-old.

"You go from watching the National Hockey League to now the WHA and how it unfolded through the '70s and the phenomenal hockey that was played in that league, and then [in] '79, sort of the unthinkable: Winnipeg got to join the National Hockey League," said Chipman.

Chipman played hockey till he was 16 and describes himself as a passionate fan. When he moved to North Dakota for university, Americans knowing about his hometown hockey team felt like a badge of honour, he said.

Chipman said celebrating the history of the Winnipeg Jets is something True North Sports and Entertainment has wanted to do since Winnipeg returned to the league in 2011. Chipman said that was one of the first subjects they took up with the league.

The Edmonton Oilers were an obvious choice for the outdoor games, Chipman said. The two teams entered the World Hockey Association together in 1972 and both entered the NHL after the 1979 season. The Jets won the last AVCO cup in 1979, beating Gretzky and the Edmonton Oilers. The Oilers went on to dominate the Jets in the NHL playoffs throughout the 1980s and early '90s.

From fan activities to concerts and the alumni game, the Heritage Classic is going to have a festival feeling, and Chipman knows that everyone has a Jets story.

This weekend, everyone will get to share those memories again.

"I think people will be really amazed by the atmosphere that's created around the game."